National Police Agency Launches Inspection into Jeju Missing Person Case 'False Closure' ... Investigating Overall Management and Oversight System

[Financial News] The National Police Agency has launched an inspection into allegations that the police officer in charge of the long-term missing-person case of Ms. Jang Mi-ran, 37, falsely closed the case. It plans to review not only the officer's handling of the case, but also the entire command, management, and oversight system.
The Audit and Inspection Office of the Korean National Police Agency said on the 24th that it had begun an inspection to verify the facts surrounding the false closure of the Jeju missing-person case, including the handling of the case and the overall command, management, and oversight system.
The inspection is expected to examine the process from the time Jang's disappearance was reported until the case was closed, as well as whether supervision and management of the officer in charge were carried out properly.
To prevent false closures, police will also begin requiring written reports on missing-person case outcomes to the head of the criminal division starting that day. They plan to improve the system so that a manager must give final approval for any request to lift a missing-person designation, with the new process to be introduced within one month.
Jang left the lodging where she had been staying long-term in Jeju at around 10:15 p.m. on May 12 and then disappeared. Her partner, who had been staying with her, reported her missing to Jeju Western Police Station three days later, on the 15th.
Investigators found that the officer in charge at the time, A, told the reporter that "he had contacted Jang and she was safe," even though he had not actually spoken with her.
About 2 hours and 30 minutes after the report was filed, A closed the case and deleted Jang from the police's missing-person profiling system management list. As a result, the search operation underway in the Hallim Port area was also halted. Police are investigating the possibility that A entered Jang's status into the system as "unidentified body," a term used to indicate death.
At 10:46 a.m. that day, police found a body believed to be Jang's near Hallim-eup, Jeju-si. It had been 104 days since her disappearance. Police plan to confirm the exact identity and cause of death through forensic examinations by the National Forensic Service and other procedures.
Acting Commissioner General of the Korean National Police Agency Jaesung Yoo said at a plenary session of the Security and Public Administration Committee at the National Assembly that day, "I deeply regret causing concern over the investigation into the Jeju missing-person case," and added, "We will examine the entire system and make institutional improvements so that such an incident never happens again."
A was also found to have falsely closed another missing-person case involving a man in his 60s that was reported on the 2nd.
[email protected] Kim Ye-ji Reporter